lea | alec
LEA LAZILY drags herself from her bed, feeling the sunlight enter into the room as she opens the window. Her hair is messy, her last day's ponytail disheveled to form an unattractive style that forces her to curse as she stares into the mirror. The sound of water running in the bathroom echoes through the room, mingled with the sweet voice of Leighton's singing. Carrie's still fast asleep - she has always been the last one to wake up - and Lea slowly brushes her shoulder to tell her that she is over sleeping.
It is a Sunday morning, and the girls had planned to go on a shopping date for the day, to ease the hecticness of their boisterous schedule that involved lots of tests and assignments. It was no lie when people say that college is a pain in the ass, but the girls somehow managed to spend time by sticking together.
The three have gotten close since the day they met each other. Carrie and Lea have known each other since middle school; it was one of those ice cream friendships that they had, where they bonded over going on little ice cream dates.
Leighton was different. They met her only through college, where she coincidentally ended up being their roommate; she got attached to them instantly - it was simply the charm and charisma that she carried. She was easily the sunshine and the heart of their friendship. The three girls loved each other.
A lazy moan escapes from Carrie's lips as she stretches her arms, her eyes shallowly puddled with sleep. Leighton strolls into the room, towards the mirror with a towel draped over her head. She removes it immediately as her face meets the mirror and dabs it over her face carefully.
"Lea," she calls, breaking their morning silence. "Is there anything that you want to tell us, babe?" she asks, her voice filled with false curiosity. Followed by Lea's gaze that shifts towards the direction where she stands, her lips twitch to falter a smile. "You know," she adds. "You don't have like a secret boyfriend or something?"
Lea blinks. She stands in front of Carrie's bed and watches her, sleepily, smile at her. Carrie lifts her brow and rests her hand on the pillow such that she was carrying her face. "What do you mean?" Lea flutters her eyes in confusion, her gaze oscillating between Leighton's and Carrie's. "Secret boyfriend? Why would I have a secret boyfriend?"
"Well," Leighton throws her hands in the air dramatically. "It's just that you've been texting someone a lot so we thought you might have a boyfriend or something," she attempts to state, her eyes squeezing perpetually as her words flew.
Carrie opens her mouth to ask, cutting Leighton, "Who is it, Lea?" She sits on her bed cross-legged, her eyes laced with eagerness. She rubs her hands together and places them on her cheeks. "Why did you have to hide the fact that you were seeing someone?"
"Guys," Lea chuckled. "I do not have a boyfriend. I would tell if you if I did," she declares. After what it feels like minutes of glares directed towards her, she sighs. "Yes, I've been texting someone but it's not a big deal. We're just friends," she makes her excuse, grabbing a towel from her drawer, preparing herself to take a shower.
"Well," Carrie blurted. "Then, who is it?"
It is mere seconds Lea breaks into a fit of laughter. "Why are you guys interrogating me like I did something wrong?" she looks at them and swallows. "You remember I texted to a wrong number one day? The guy that I met at the party who gave me the wrong number?" she blinks and lifts one of her brows.
"Honey," Leighton sighs as she releases a breathy laugh. "There's so much we don't know," she chuckles. "Start from the beginning."
"Okay," Lea swallows the lump in her throat and casually sits on her bed. The other two girls follow her and sit in front of her. They give each other curious glances but then finally shift their gazes towards Lea who looks at them equivocally, feeling left out. "Carrie, you remember Bash? The guy I met at the party who gave me his phone number?" Lea inquires. Followed by a nod, she continues, "The thing is, he actually gave me the wrong number. And, I texted that number one night, and I found out that it wasn't Bash's."
"Then, whose was it?" Leighton shoots the question at her.
"It's a guy named Alec and he doesn't know Bash. So, Bash deliberately gave me the wrong number and I don't know why," she shrugs back a reply.
"And?" The two girls lift their brows simultaneously.
"I don't know how but Alec and I became friends," she answers. Before they open their mouths to speak, she cuts them off, "Somehow, we got to know each other."
"So, you randomly texted a wrong number and now you're friends with a stranger," Carrie nods, trying to process the information.
"It isn't as horrible as it sounds. You guys know me, I freaked out at first but he really is a nice guy."
"Lea," Leighton exhales. "This is crazy. I mean think about it, he could be an eighty-year-old man."
"I've had those theories, Leigh," Lea chuckles. "He's 17."
"Do you like him?" Carrie asks, her voice soft drenched in morning sleep.
"He has a girlfriend."
"How's that related to this?" she shakes her head.
"No, of course not. I just got to know him. That would be absurd," Lea swallows. The two girls stare at her, not being able to process the information. "I know that this is crazy and I've had every single theory that you have in your minds right now. But, I like him. He's funny and sweet. I like talking to him and he's okay with it."
"But, he has a girlfriend. You wouldn't want to text someone's boyfriend," Carrie declares. "The same thing happened to you, remember?"
Lea opens her mouth to fight back but swallows every word that harmfully stings on her mouth. Her eyes flutter as her gaze shifts towards the ground. She tugs at the selvage of her towel that sits on her lap. "Things aside, why did you have to hide the fact that you were talking to him?" Leighton asks.
She says, "I don't know. I thought it wasn't important. It's just that, it felt good. To make a new friend."
"Well," Leighton breaks her silence. "Just friends, right? That's harmless," she chuckles, trying to ease the mood.
Lea's lips curl to produce a smile. "That's just it. I accidentally texted the wrong number and I'm friends with a stranger. It's like getting to know an online friend. Period. And, I need to take a shower," she continues and walks towards the bathroom sheepishly.
She hears the two girls chuckling to themselves as she walks through the door. She tucks a strand of her hair behind her ear and shuts the door close. Her face glimmers with morning sleep as it meets the mirror.
If there was one thing Lea valued so much other than love in her life, it was privacy. She did have two best friends whom she loved with all her heart but it wasn't like she had to tell everything about her to them. There were certain things in life that needed to be kept untold because it was best that way.
And, she realized that Alec was one of those things.
Just when she's about to sink into another bunch of thoughts, her phone buzzes next to her, a curtain away. She wipes her hand on the towel and slowly crawls it so that she picks it up.
lea, save me. i'm stuck in one of the shittiest moments of life.
what's wrong, alec?
it's official. my parents are getting a divorce.
Why isn't he texting his girlfriend? she thinks.
oh my god, i'm so sorry. where are you now?
i drove home from my dad's because i couldn't be there. it's pathetic, lea. my mom and dad fighting.
and, they've said that i can stay with my mom till i'm 18, which is barely two weeks away. i feel like i'm an 8-year-old girl who's waiting for her birthday.
i'm so sorry, alec. that's really horrible. i don't know what to say.
and, the shittiest thing is that my dad cheated on my mom with another woman. that was the main reason that led to the divorce. it's like my life's a huge fucking mess and i don't get a say in it.
She steps out of the shower, wrapping her body with her robe. She bites her lip and watches the water drip down to form tiny puddles on the floor.
forget it. i don't know why i'm dumping all this mess on you. what have you been up to the past few days?
i'm drowned in assignments. by the way, the girls asked me about you.
what about me?
who you were. how we got to know each other.
tell them your answer was 'coincidence'.
alec, it didn't occur to me before but it's strange i have no idea how you look.
pretty hot, i'd tell.
you're never too sad to be cocky, are you?
haha. it's just that i can forget about everything when i'm talking to you. that's probably why you were the first person i could think of when i'm feeling low.
i can relate to that. i can totally be myself with you which is..nice.
likewise. you're like the best accident that's ever happened to me.
whoever that bash is, tell him i said thank you.
yes. thank you, sebastian last-name.
sebastian?
yeah, that's his name.
sebastian smith?
i don't know his last name. he never really told me.
fuck.
everything makes sense now. god, this is a huge mess.
what makes sense? i don't get you.
i think i know who bash is.
..?
cut to the chase, alec.
he's my brother.
•••
A/N: That was a cliffhanger.. kind of? What are your thoughts on the chapter? It was a pretty long chapter for the story but I hope it was good. Things are finally starting to pick up. Don't forget to vote and leave your thoughts.
Don't forget to listen to the above song. I think it describes Alec's situation perfectly and it was suggested by the wonderful lemonshopper.
Spread the love, Nova x